Ways To Improve Your Essay: A Guide For Students

It’s understood that the further you advance academically and progress through grade levels, the harder your written assignments will become. Great essay writing takes plenty of skill, practice and determination. No student is expected to master the art of academic essay writing overnight. But like all things, the ability to write great papers can be achieved using the right approach. Here is a guide to help student improve their essay writing abilities:

Start Organizing

While planning a writing assignment usually involves setting up a series of tasks and setting up a schedule, organization is more of a mental run down of what it is you want to accomplish with what you have available. Consider your sources, the assignment prompt and how many other responsibilities you have before getting started.

Getting Information

Many instructors give you detailed reading lists that include plenty of recommended readings outside of the required in-class readings. Thing about the resources you have available to you at the library, online or even in your own possession. Start brainstorming topic ideas and make a list of the easiest ones to tackle.

Start Planning

Now you can create a detailed plan of attack that includes researching, reading, writing drafts, revising, and putting in the final touches. It helps to make a calendar for each task working backwards from your deadline. Give yourself plenty of time between each task to get some rest and to account for unexpected challenges.

The Writing Stage

If you have trouble getting started you should consider creating an outline and writing a rough first draft. These don’t have to be perfect; they only need to get your ideas down in a way that you can review and think critically on the material you have in support of your argument. Later stages allow you to revise your content, proofread for errors and edit to express your ideas more clearly

Writing Style

No two writers are alike. Some people are scientific and direct in their approach while others can make their writing interesting through the use of vivid images and word choice. No matter where you fit on this writing spectrum, there are two things you should completely avoid: over-complication and vagueness. These are elements of bad writing and will drastically take away from your paper

The Extra Stuff

This last part is about doing all the clean-up work that is sure to improve on each individual writing assignment you are given. Set plenty of time to edit, proofread and format your work. Do each of these carefully so you don’t miss a mistake you could have easily corrected.